NFL Betting: Week 4 Recap and Wagering News

We’ve come to the end of the month of September in the NFL and as per usual, everything everyone thought would happen hasn’t come to fruition. Here’s a recap of a topsy-turvy Week 4:

The NFC East and AFC North: Why We Love Football

What in the world is going on in the NFC East and the AFC North? Most NFL online betting handicappers expected these two divisions to be among the most highly-contested with as many as seven potential playoff teams in the running. As it turns out, the Cleveland Browns – the one team everyone had written off – are actually tied for first in the AFC North and have been the most impressive team over the last two weeks.

Take a look at these shocking facts:

The Browns are now 2-0 after trading away running back Trent Richardson. They’ve won two straight with third-string quarterback Brian Hoyer under center.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants are a combined 0-8 this season.
None of the eight teams in the two divisions are above .500.
Chip Kelly’s revolutionary offense, which shredded the Washington Redskins in Week 1, has scored just 36 points in the last two weeks.

This is why we love the NFL. No analysts, fans or experts that sell NFL betting tips could have foreseen this. So where do we go from here?

At this point, the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers are dead in the water. Not only are they both 0-4, they both can’t stop turning over the ball. The Steelers had two more giveaways on Sunday while the Giants had three. Both teams lead their respective conferences in the category.

In the NFC East, the race is still wide open. Washington was left for dead after three weeks but they earned a hard-fought win in Oakland and are now just one game out of first place. Philadelphia’s lethal offense has lost its bite and considering they play so fast and have lost their scoring touch, they are actually crippling the defense. The Eagles defense has spent more time on the field than any of the other 32 teams. Meanwhile, the Cowboys still can’t take that next step. While they appear to be the best team in the division right now, they still have brain cramp losses like the one on Sunday where they blew a 21-10 lead in San Diego, scoring no points in the second half en route to a 30-21 loss.

In the AFC North, not much has changed for Baltimore and Cincinnati. On Sunday, the Bengals again reinforced that they aren’t in the elite class of the AFC by losing in Cleveland. Quarterback Andy Dalton will face some harsh criticism after he went just 23-of-42 (4.9 yards per pass) with no touchdowns and a pick. Many people feel he’s the man keeping this team from taking the next step. As for Baltimore, they lost in Buffalo but still proved their probably the best team in the division. If they can cut down on the turnovers and get back to running the football, the Super Bowl champs will probably remain as the team to beat in the AFC North.

And what about those Browns? Are you going to trust them on the NFL odds now that they’ve won outright as 5- and 7-point underdogs in the last two weeks? They’ve allowed just 70 points this season and their Hoyer-led offense has scored 48 points in the last two weeks. Can this possibly continue? This have another winnable game this week as Buffalo visits but after that, they host Detroit before visiting Green Bay and Kansas City. Those who bet on the NFL will know a lot more about them by the end of October than we do now.

Totals Betting: Week 4 is a Split

Without factoring the Sunday nighter, the totals from Sunday’s action presented us with seven unders and seven overs. The unders started well but three of the four 4:00 PM ET games all went over on the NFL lines.

Significant Injuries to Note

Jake Locker, Tennessee Titans

Locker’s performance so far this season (six TD’s, zero INT’s, 62% completion percentage) has been integral in the Titans 3-1 start. However, he was carted off the field on Sunday with a hip injury that was serious enough to send him to the hospital. That could be a big blow for the Titans, who appeared to be rising in the AFC ranks.

Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins

The Redskins just can’t seem to catch a break. Just as they earned their first win of the season on Sunday, they had to watch star running back Alfred Morris leave the game with a rib injury. Keep an eye on it throughout the week to gauge how serious it is.

C.J. Spiller, Buffalo Bills

For a second-straight week, Spiller was forced from the game. However, unlike last time when he was confident that he’d play the following week, he admitted that his status for Week 5 is in doubt. This time it’s an ankle injury and he won’t have much time to rest as the Bills play on Thursday night.

Stinging NFL Point Spread Loss of the Week…

Houston Texans. At Bovada, they were a 3-point home underdog on the NFL betting odds all week, so it’s not really a loss but a victory was surely flushed away.

The Texans came out on fire as they dominated Seattle to start. They built a 20-3 halftime lead that would surely hold up – especially since we’re getting three points on the NFL point spread, right? Wrong.

The Seahawks came back with 14 unanswered in the fourth quartered aided by Matt Schaub’s pathetic pick-six from Seattle’s 40-yard line. Then the Seahawks took it in overtime. Simply pitiful if you had the Texans.